The President's Special Trust and Confidence
Mike Walker, Col. USMC (retired)
Every Officer takes an oath of office and, in return, is given by the People a degree of special and trust and confidence to carryout out their service to the Nation.
This President has foolishly squandered a good measure of that precious quantity and if, as a result, he loses his credibility with the American people then he will give new meaning to the phrase “lame duck.”
For a long while, the President walked the razor’s edge without harm.
What about an Ambassador and three others killed by terrorists in what was basically an unprotected Benghazi compound (by State Department standards) at one of the most dangerous places on earth? The Administration’s response: We will investigate, get the perpetrators, and claim (falsely) it was caused by a mob upset over a film next to no one had ever seen. Who cares? Where in the heck is Benghazi?
What about the IRS improperly targeting the Tea Party? The Administration reacted with outrage, promised an investigation, and (falsely) blamed it on a few rogue agents in Cincinnati. Who cares? I don’t belong to the Tea Party.
The “who cares?” list went on (Spying on reporters, NSA spying, Fast and Furious, etc) and was largely irrelevant except to the political classes.
Then came the Obama Care fiasco.
Who cares about Obama Care? Today, millions of American’s care and are not happy. By this time next year, who will care? Tens of millions of American’s will care and they too will not be happy.
“You can keep your plan. Period!”
“You can keep your doctor. Period!”
All the deceptions finally reached a breaking point because Obama Care touched Main Street and what was damaged was the President’s special trust and confidence. The ability to govern has already been compromised.
Senator Marco Rubio, who spent enormous political capital working on a rational fix to our badly broken immigration system, threw in the towel – not because he lost faith in his cause but due to the prior bad-faith acts by the Administration.
Many of the House Republicans he tried to enlist were willing to work the issue. The hurdle he could not overcome was trust and confidence in the Administration. They did not trust the President to honor any compromise he opposed. They argued: Yes, he would cheer on the bipartisan agreement and he would sign the bill, but later, he would issue executive orders to nullify the key compromises that had made the bipartisan agreement possible.
In good faith, Rubio would not deny that the President might do exactly that if they voted for a fix to the system. Immigration reform died in late 2013.
One of the most damaging stories about presidential dishonesty is currently a NON-STORY and relates to this 2009 Inauguration Day statement:
“President Obama has committed to making this administration the most open and transparent in history.” Here is today’s reality.
Over an insignificant foreign aid policy issue, the White House made an argument in Federal Court that would have effectively ended the Freedom of Information Act as it applied to the President, a concept that should chill the soul of any civil libertarian.
The District Judge, Ellen Huvelle – a Clinton appointee, found the theory so repugnant that she termed it governance by “secret law” and made a summary judgment against the Administration. For details see:
The deception is almost Orwellian in context. The Administration publically claims to be open and transparent while quietly becoming the most closed and secretive administration in American history.
The President repeatedly misled the American people, the day of reckoning has arrived, and the cost will be tremendous. When the President speaks in the future, who will trust him? The road back to regaining the confidence of the American people will be long and difficult.
Special Trust and Confidence is not simply a phrase to be uttered; it is the lifeblood of effective leadership.
